On Wednesday morning Caroline was summoned to the castle—by Mitch. Josh was caught up in a conference call but wanted her to know that the wedding planner had arrived from London. The lord of the manor had used his minion to request her presence. Once again he was confused at his place in the hierarchy. People did not summon Caroline. Ever. Still, she was curious enough to do as she was told. This time, at least.
There was a note on the castle door for Caroline, saying that she should let herself in. As soon as she entered the foyer, her jaw dropped. The carpet that had once hidden Italian marble flooring was now gone. The rich walnut panelling had been unearthed from beneath the generic plasterboard. And snaking its way around the top of the wall was the decorative moulding that Caroline loved. It was wonderful.
“I hop
e you’re pleased with yourself.” Josh stood in the doorway of the grand room.
He leaned against the doorjamb, ankles crossed and arms folded. Today’s T-shirt had the Cookie Monster on it. Although he was trying his best to appear annoyed, the sparkle in his eyes undermined his efforts.
“I’m suffering here. The floors are cold, the hall is dark and someone’s got to dust all that crap up there.” He pointed at the cornices.
Caroline rolled her eyes at him. “I wouldn’t worry. It won’t be you.”
He smiled at her, and her stomach tried to climb up her oesophagus.
“At least let me get some rugs. Marble would be great if we lived in the Mediterranean. But this is Scotland. It’s like walking on an ice block.”
“Fine. You can have rugs.” He opened his mouth to speak, but Caroline got in first. “But I’m choosing them.”
He grimaced. “Make sure you don’t get those thin Persian things. I want something with depth.” He thought about it for a minute. “Maybe we can get rugs that are heated. Like electric blankets for your feet. If they don’t have something like that, I’m inventing it.” He grinned at her, clearly pleased with himself. “I invented something.”
“Well done. You’re a genius. Now where is this meeting?”
Josh threw an arm around her shoulder, which she promptly tried to shrug off. He held her tighter. “Did you wake up on the wrong side of the bed this morning? Or are you just tired from dreaming about me all night long?”
She wriggled to free herself. As usual, her effort was wasted.
Josh leaned in towards her ear and murmured, “Caroline, Caroline. This marriage will be no fun at all if you can’t get used to me touching you.”
“It feels strange. I hardly know you.”
“We’ll have to work on that.” He waggled his eyebrows mischievously as he pushed open the door to the kitchen.
“We were thinking a grey colour theme,” Archie was telling the wedding planner.
Great. Things just kept getting better. The domino boys had been informed of the meeting.
Archie waved at her as he kept right on talking. “We’re thinking of something like the colour of a submarine. You know, from a naval base.”
Caroline strode past Archie and held out her hand to the pristinely dressed woman with a stunned expression on her face. Her chestnut hair was in a chignon, her makeup was understated in its perfection and her black suit screamed money. Caroline suddenly felt grubby.
“Caroline Patterson. I’m marrying Josh.” She stumbled over the words. They sounded completely ludicrous. To her credit, if the woman had any thoughts on the mismatch between Caroline and Josh, it didn’t show on her face.
“Millicent Price. Wedding planner and event coordinator.”
“We’re planning the wedding’s theme,” Archie told Caroline. “We figured that ‘grey’ and ‘orderly’ were the two words that summed you up most. And what’s more grey and orderly than the navy? So how about a naval-themed wedding?”
He looked so proud of himself that Caroline almost agreed to avoid disappointing him.
“I made a collage.” James held up a large piece of grey paper. “My grandson helped me.” There were pictures of naval boats and submarines, grey balloons, a cake in the shape of a naval destroyer and several suggestions for music—all of which seemed to centre around the war music of Glen Miller’s band.
Caroline took a deep breath. “I don’t know what to say.”
The men patted each other on the back.
“Told you she’d be impressed,” Hamish said.
“I still say we need something more girly. Weddings are girly,” Brian said.